Ralf König
Ralf König (born 8 August 1960) is one of the best known and most commercially successful German comic book creators. His books have been translated into many languages. He has resided in Soest, Dortmund and Berlin and now lives in Cologne.
Ralf König

This image is a work by Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons user C.Suthorn. When reusing, credit me as described in the Licensing information below. I would appreciate being notified (wikimail, talk pag · C.Suthorn / cc-by-sa-4.0 / commons.wikimedia.org (Note the three necessary links to author, licence and image file in the attribution.) · Own work (IPTC Unique Object Name: CS-konigralfbr) · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Born
- 8 August 1960
- Birthplace
- Soest, West Germany
- Awards
- Full list
- Nationality
- Germany.
- Occupation
- writer, screenwriter, LGBTQ rights activist, film actor, comics writer, graphic artist and comics artist.
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Ralf König (born 8 August 1960) is one of the best known and most commercially successful German comic book creators. His books have been translated into many languages. He has resided in Soest, Dortmund and Berlin and now lives in Cologne.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Note VALÉORINE
No house-authored Note is published until its assertions and sources pass the VALÉORINE evidence contract. The documentary article remains available in full while that enrichment is being consolidated.
Documentary enrichment in progress · no unsupported statement published
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Ralf König. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Evidence Panel
not yet certified
- Identity
- resolved
- Independent source families
- 0
- Admitted assertions
- 0
- Open conflicts
- 0
Authority files
wikidata · Q52566 · wikipedia · Ralf König
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Born — 8 August 1960 • Birthplace — Soest, West Germany • Notable Works — The Killer Condom Der bewegte Mann Lysistrata Pretty Baby Wie die Karnickel • Awards — Full list
Biography
Biography
After attending a German Hauptschule, König completed an apprenticeship, learning the trade of a joiner. In 1979, he came out as a gay man, and about this time he created short comics stories that appeared in the Munich underground magazine Zomix and the gay periodical Rosa Flieder. He returned to school from 1981 to 1986, attending the public Kunstakademie Düsseldorf and pursuing a major in free art (Freie Kunst). Also in 1981, his early collected comics were published by the gay publishing house Verlag rosa Winkel as SchwulComix (GayComix). In 1987, he wrote The Killer Condom (Kondom des Grauens), his first comic with a continuous story, which was later produced as a film. In the German-speaking world, König's comics have a vast homosexual fan base. Despite initial skepticism about the prospect of a broader audience due to his works' frequent setting within the gay milieu, his comics have achieved considerable popularity among heterosexual readers as well. A few of his comics have been adapted into films, and several have translated into other languages. By 2008, his total publications exceeded 5 million copies. Since November 2017, König is an Ambassador of intaktiv e.V., an association against ritual circumcision of male children.
Style
Style
• Illustration — Mural in Brussels, disfigured with the words transphobia and racism König's stories are drawn in an expressive cartoon style. Consistently written with humour, they occasionally deal with serious themes such as the tension between sexual freedom and the risk of AIDS infection. His work has repeatedly portrayed daily routines of gay life, often based on personal experiences of himself and his friends. He has also written works that deal centrally with heterosexuals (Der bewegte Mann, Hempels Sofa) and with religious themes, criticizing literalist readings of the bible (Prototyp and Archetyp) as well as Islamic fundamentalism (Dschinn Dschinn).
Comics
Comics
• Sarius, 1981 • Das sensationelle Comic-Book, 1981 • SchwulComix (Gay Comics), 1981 • SchwulComix 2 (Gay Comics 2), 1984 • Macho Comix (Macho Comix), 1984 • SchwulComix 3 (Gay Comics 3), 1985 • SchwulComix 4 (Gay Comics 4), 1986 • Kondom des Grauens (The Killer Condom), 1987 • Der bewegte Mann (Maybe...Maybe Not), 1987 • Lysistrata, 1987 • Pretty Baby, 1988 (Maybe...Maybe Not Again!, sequel to Der bewegte Mann) • Comics, Cartoons, Critzeleien, 1988 • Safere Zeiten (Safer Times), 1988 • Beach Boys, 1989 • Prall aus dem Leben (Life to the Full), 1989 • Bis auf die Knochen (Down to the Bone), 1990 (sequel to Kondom des Grauens) • Heiße Herzen (Flaming Hearts), 1990 (with Detlev Meyer) • Zitronenröllchen (Lemon cake), 1990 • Schwulxx-Comix (Gay Comix), 1990 (with Walter Moers) • Deutsche Tuntenpost, 1991 • Bullenklöten! (Bull's Balls), 1992 •...und das mit links!, 1993 • Konrad und Paul, 1993 • Konrad und Paul 2, 1994 • Konrad und Paul 3, 1997 • Jago, 1998 • Superparadise, 1999 (sequel to Bullenklöten) • Poppers! Rimming! Tittentrimm!, 2001 • Wie die Karnickel (like bunnies), 2002 • Sie dürfen sich jetzt küssen, 2003 (Third part of Bullenklöten) • Suck my duck, 2004 • Roy und Al, 2004 • Dschinn Dschinn: Der Zauber des Schabbar, 2005 • Dschinn Dschinn 2: Schleierzwang im Sündenpfuhl, 2006 • Trojanische Hengste, 2006 • Hempels Sofa, 2007 • Stutenkerle, 2008 • Prototyp, 2008 • Archetyp, 2009 • Antityp, 2010 • Der Dicke König, 2011 • Elftausend Jungfrauen, 2012 • Herbst in der Hose, 2017 • Santa Claus Junior, 2017 • Stehaufmännchen, 2019
English translations
English translations
Some of König's books have been translated into English. First was Kondom des Grauens, published as The Killer Condom (1991, reprint 2009). The two-part book Der bewegte Mann/Pretty Baby appeared as Maybe... Maybe Not (1998)/Maybe... Maybe Not Again! (1999). Later translations include Bullenklöten as Bull's Balls (2002), Roy und Al as Roy & Al (2006) and Down to the Bone (2011).
Documentary
Documentary
A 2012 German documentary film directed by Rosa von Praunheim named König des Comics follows König's life and work. Besides König, those interviewed include Hella von Sinnen, Ralph Morgenstern, Joachim Król as well as friends and admirers of the cartoonist, like a Swiss fan who visits his beloved writer, a couple of friends who played important roles during König's youth, a comic book seller etc. The film also includes clips from König's comic public readings. It was screened at various festivals such as Berlin, Buenos Aires, and San Sebastian. It reached a wider audience than most of von Praunheim's documentaries and it is available for streaming on digital platforms.
Identity
Identity
Ralf König is recorded with the occupation LGBTQ rights activist. Recorded with the occupation graphic artist. Recorded with the occupation comics writer. Recorded with the occupation film actor. Recorded as writer, screenwriter, LGBTQ rights activist and film actor.
Der deutsche Comicautor und Comiczeichner Ralf König auf der Vienna Comix.
C.Stadler/Bwag
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
Explore 1960–2005
The full dated record · 4 entries
1960
Ralf König was born on 8 August 1960.
1992
Ralf König - Dicke Dödel 1 - Bullenklöten (1992) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
2002
Ralf König - Konrad Und Paul, Band 1 (2002) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
2005
Ralf König - Dschinn Dschinn. Der Zauber Des Schabbar (2005) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
Films
• Der bewegte Mann, 1994 • Kondom des Grauens, 1996 (script by Ralf König) • Wie die Karnickel, 2002 (script by Ralf König) • Lisístrata, Spain 2002 (following Lysistrata)
Awards
• Joop Klepzeiker Prijs, 1988 • Best German comic creator, Grenoble, 1990 • Max-und-Moritz Prize, 1992 • Best International Comic Creator, Barcelona, 1992 • Bundesfilmpreis for the movie Der bewegte Mann, 1995 • Goldene Leinwand mit Stern for the movie Der bewegte Mann, 1995 • Goldener RIK, Köln, 2002 • Zivilcourage-Preis des Berliner CSD, Berlin, 2004 • Prix Alph’Art, Angoulême, 2005 • Premio miglior storia lunga, 2005 • Max-und-Moritz Prize, 2006 • Max-und-Moritz Prize, 2010
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.ralf-koenig.de English biography. Ralf-koenig.de.
- 2.Schneider, Matthias. Ralf König bio. Goethe.de. March 2005.
- 3.Lambiek. Ralf König. Lambiek.net.
- 4.Neue Botschafter für genitale Selbstbestimmung: Dr. Necla Kelek und Ralf König. Hpd.de. 10 November 2017.
- 5.intaktiv-Botschafter - intaktiv e.V. Intaktiv.de. July 2014.
- 6.Ferno, Clay N. KING OF COMICS: A TRIBUTE TO ILLUSTRATOR RALF KÖNIG (review). Forces of Geek. February 28, 2014.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Partially resolvedreference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q52566: Ralf KönigWikimedia Foundation
Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Comics and comic art
9,920 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Rakudai Ninja RantarōSeries
- Rakujitsu no PathosSeries
- Rakuten KitazawaArtist
- Ral GradSeries
- Ralph BartonArtist
- Ralph FullerArtist
- Ralph HamelmannArtist
- Ralph NieseArtist
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a work by Ralf König?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.